AFF WOMEN’S: Myanmar Beat Philippines In Opener

HO CHI MINH CITY (13 Sept 2012) – Myanmar put up enough of a performance in their first game of Group A of the AFF Women’s Championship 2012 to beat the Philippines 3-0 here at the Thong Nhat Stadium.

With the team touted to carry Myanmar’s challenge for the SEA Games gold which they will be hosting in 2013, there are certainly plenty of work to be done in the next twelve months for the team under Yoshinori Kumada.

For the Philippines, they are still a long way to be able to compete against the higher-ranked teams in ASEAN where perhaps their only source of talent is in striker Heather Cooke.

And she certainly showed plenty of pace at the start of the tie but her crosses were not well supported by his team-mates and were easily cleared by the Myanmar backline.

Just five minutes in, Myanmar went ahead off a quick counter-attack with Khin Moe Wai delivering the cross that was glanced in by San San Maw.

The game then went into a big midfield battle as neither team could stamp their dominance. Myanmar seem to lose focus while for the Philippines, they just lacked direction and pace.

In the 38th minute, off a mistake from Philippine defender Natasha Alquiros, the waiting Zat Chi Oo just pounced on the ball to slot the ball home beyond the reach of keeper Inna Palacios.

Two goals downs, the Philippines tried to recover into the second half as they look to be more confident on the flanks. In the 62nd minute, Alquiros floated in the corner but Cooke’s header went straight to Myanmar keeper May Khin Ya Min.

Myanmar got a great chance to score their third goal in the 82nd minute when Palacios slipped inside the box, but May Thu Kyaw’s attempt narrowly missed the upright.

But with two minutes remaining on the clock, the Philippines gave away a penalty when Mallory Dayot brought Yee Yee Oo inside the box. San Maw did not hesitate from the spot for Myanmar’s third and final goal of the game.